If we wish them to be successful in the 21st Century, students will need to know how to

• Find and access information efficiently
• Evaluate the quality of information including both accuracy and bias
• Communicate effectively using all means of media
• Collaborate both in person and electronically to tap into the collective intelligence of many.
• Behave responsibly to keep themselves and others safe through an awareness of the dangers of a connected world

A Broken World - A History Wiki From the Beginning of World War I to the Cold War

Put another way, students should leave school;

• Knowing more about the world
• Being able to think outside the box
• Being smarter about new sources of information
• With good people skills developing

21st century students should be able to ask themselves the following essential questions;

• How do I know information is true?
• What are the key components of good communication?
• How does the choice of tool impact the final product? (and vice versa: how does the final product impact the choice of tool?)
• What criteria do I use to select the tool?
• How does the mode of interaction between people(s) impact understanding, awareness, and behaviour?
• How do I learn best?

The skills needed are

• To be able to, and know how to, learn, unlearn, and relearn
• To be able to navigate information not only successfully, but quickly and efficiently
• To understand the connectedness of the world in which we live
• To understand that my geographical location on earth (or in space for that matter) no longer matters.
• That information and knowledge are living, changing, elements of our time

.

..........this is the world that our students are living in and entering into

So what is stopping us from providing an education that prepares our students for this world?